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CRIME: Hollywood drama in Dar port theft attempt


Abela Msikula and Edward Qorro, The Citizen Reporters

Dar es  Salaam, Tanzania. 

A  brazen robbery attempt followed by a high speed train chase, police hot in pursuit trailing in the midnight sky, guns up in the air – this was the scene at the Dar es Salaam harbour early yesterday morning as officers foiled a-well-coordinated attempt to steal copper worth over Sh1 billion using a Tazara locomotive.

The drama, which started at 3am yesterday morning and lasted over two hours on Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) territory, saw a law-enforcement officer-turned-copper thief exchange gunfire with Harbour police culminating in his eventual capture on port grounds.

An hour later, harbour police were back on the scene, chasing down a group of men who were attempting to steal barrels of oil from an Oryx depot. One of the would-be thieves was shot on his left leg. Five others were arrested, according to minister for Transport Dr Harrison Mwakyembe.

The Citizen on Sunday learned at the scene that that police officers who were on patrol in the wee hours of the morning interrupted the oil theft in progress, allegations later confirmed during an emergencyTransport Ministry press briefing late last evening.

In a curious case of gamekeepers-turned-poachers, the officers stole five barrels of oil, loaded them into their patrol vehicle and sped off into the night.

These developments come barely two weeks after Dr Mwakyembe suspended TPA director-general Ephraim Mgawe and six others over allegation of cargo theft and embezzlement at the port in Dar es Salaam.

The transport minister told journalists at a press conference he convened late in the evening that he has ordered an investigation into the two incidents which he said involved police officers.

TPA top management was yesterday forced to convene an emergency meeting to discuss events at the port; a valuable hub in East Africa connecting six landlocked countries to the rest of the world.

Sources at the scene told The Citizen on Sunday that at around 2pm, a Tazara locomotive came into the harbour to pick up fertiliser. In a curious move that points to significant planning, the engine driver conveniently parked the train near a container loaded with Zambian copper, awaiting clearance.

Witnesses say a police officer assigned to supervise fertilizer loading took off his uniform and covered himself in a piece of “kitenge” in an attempt to hide his credentials,  then turned his attention to the copper, directing efforts to load it up into the idling Tazara locomotive.

Minutes later, the harbour police were alerted and perhaps sensing danger, the driver of the train engine and his shunting officer began to take off, ramming his way through port barriers in his hasty getaway and driving on into the Dar es Salaam night. “After the driver and his assistant discovered there was no way they could escape arrest, he drove away in desperation and hit one of the barriers at the port and escaped” said the source.

The train driver and his yard pilot drove out towards the outskirts of the city before his getaway was brought to a sudden halt by police officers at Yombo; nearly 7 kilometres from the harbour.

They abandoned the engine and escaped on foot, according to a harbour police officer who requested anonymity. A police officers and a Tazara security guard have been arrested over the incident according to Transport minister Mwakyembe. The other suspects on the copper theft incident are still at large.

A port official who asked to not be named alleged that some security guards have been conspiring with businessmen and coolies to rob the port for many years.

“Every time we arrest thieves it is these guards who are ready to come bail the culprits out,” he said. The corporate communications officer for TPA Mr Frank Mziray confirmed the incidents but declined to give details.

Source: The Citizen (09/09/2012): http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/component/content/article/37-tanzania-top-news-story/25576-hollywood-drama-in-dar-port-theft-attempt.html


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